Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn't really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That's because they were able to connect experiences they've had and synthesize new things.

The number of Canadians who cut the cable TV cord grew by 1% last year, many of them opting for Internet TV services like Netflix and video on demand, according to a recent Media Technology Monitor report.

Canadian TV and Internet providers like Telus need not worry about protecting one side of their business from the other (Internet), however.

Not even Netflix thinks that over-the-top (OTT) TV and film streaming will replace cable TV any time soon.

A bigger concern for companies like Telus and Shaw is not competition for its TV subscription business but rather the strain that streaming to second-screen devices (tablets, smartphones and laptops) is placing on Wi-Fi.

Telus recently expanded its Optik TV on the Go app to allow its customers to watch video on demand via their tablets or smartphones. It’s just the latest example of providers trying to meet a growing demand for content over second screen devices.

The average Canadian home now has half a dozen connected devices, which is causing Wi-Fi congestion, especially in apartments and dense neighbourhoods.

Wi-Fi is a radio signal and there are only 11 channels over which it transmits. It’s an unmanaged spectrum, which means it operates on a first-come, first-served basis. Smart meters and other devices also transmit over Wi-Fi.

Congestion and interference (which can even be caused by microwave ovens) can cause Wi-Fi connections to suddenly drop.

Internet service providers take heat for lost connections, as customers call in to complain, when in fact it’s often not a broadband issue at all but a Wi-Fi issue.

“If you cannot connect your iPad, you call the carrier up,” said Stephane Bourque, CEO of Incognito Software, which makes the software that cable and Internet companies use to analyze and manage their broadband service. “To be honest, a number of times it’s not even their problem.”

Chris Langdon, Telus’ vice-president of consumer products and services, confirmed, “We’ve seen an increase over the last 12 months in those complaints,”

In some cases, the problem is simply that the Wi-Fi signal doesn’t broadcast far enough to reach more remote parts of a home or townhome, so homeowners will install a Wi-Fi repeater or extender. But if enough people in a townhome or apartment complex do that, it can actually amplify the Wi-Fi congestion problem.

“Every provider we’ve spoken to, Wi-Fi is one of their top concerns,” Bourque said.

To make matters worse, most machine-to-machine (M2M) communication also uses Wi-Fi, so the problem may get even worse as “smart homes” have more M2M devices installed.

“It’s not going to get any easier,” Bourque said.

If there’s one upside to Wi-Fi congestion for telecoms like Telus, it’s that it makes super-fast LTE (long term evolution) cellular service more attractive. Unlike Wi-Fi, LTE is a dedicated cellular network, and offers speeds that are equal to broadband Internet.

“Congestion is generally a function of lots of people trying to use an unmanaged spectrum,” Langdon said. “If you really need to get connectivity, look at cellular data as a way to get access a network that’s fully managed.”